Hello there!

Sorry I haven't been updating. You know, finals and all that jazz.

Here is chapter seven, all ready to be read!

Chapter 7:

"And... That's about it!" Luneah announced, right back again at the Great Hall. They had done a full 360 around the village, but Valka was nowhere to be found.

She spun around to look Hiccup in the eye, and smiled brightly when he was still wide-eyed from his experience from looking around the town.

"Cool!" Hiccup said. He now knew his way around the island of Isunder, but something was... Missing. "What about the forests?"

"Oh! Sure, that's my favorite place to be."

"Me too, back at Berk."

Her face lit up, and they crossed a series of rope bridges connecting the rocky cliffs. They eventually came to one large plateau with a forest adjourning the top like a huge hat. The trees were wide and cone-shaped, and stretched high into the sky. The sunlight was nearly blocked out due to the broad branches and the surplus of needles on the trees.

"Here it is, the Red Pine Forest." (A/N: Imagine the California Redwoods)

It was then that Hiccup noticed the red tint on the bark of the gargantuan trees.

"We never had anything like this back at Berk!"

Luneah saw the awed look on his face, and decided to show him her biggest secret. One that only three other people knew. She took his hand and led him deep into the forest, before coming to a tree that was larger than most. There was a healthy amount of moss on the bark, and Luneah moved it out of the way to reveal a spiral staircase carved into the bark.

"Whoa." His voice echoed through the woody interior.

"Come on! I need to show you the top!" She yelled, running through the opening.

They sprinted up the stairs, two steps at a time, and just when Hiccup was about to collapse, the staircase leveled out and revealed a human- sized hole carved in the bark, before the stairs started spiraling back up.

"There are twelve layers. This is the first one." She walked through the carving and stepped onto a branch. Hiccup carefully followed, before gawking at the sight.

Down below, about a hundred feet, was the ground. He was also very astonished to note that inside the pine needles was hollow. Suddenly, Hiccup felt very uneasy, being this high up, which was weird, because he rides on dragons! He noticed that the branches were flattened out to create a safe walkway for people. It was anything but narrow. It was one of the largest paths Hiccup had ever seen. Even in a full size village! The walkway could easily fit ten people walking side-by-side. They kept walking until it finally came to a narrower branch with railings over the side just for safety.

The branches extended up on an angle. Nailed onto those branches were planks of wood that acted as benches, and there was a slight part in the pine needles that revealed all of Isunder and the rest of the forest.

The view was absolutely breathtaking.

"I... Uh... How long did this take?" Hiccup felt his breath literally leave his lungs and not come back after a moment or two.

"Me and a couple other people started on this when I was about seven. The last layer at the top is the one that's the most finished."

"How did you do the staircases?"

"We paid a few Whispering Deaths."

"With what?"

"Each one got two large salmons."

Hiccup looked at her like she was crazy. "Whispering Deaths are virtually untrainable."

"Well, I did it, so it is possible. Maybe unlikely, or extremely improbable, but not impossible. Never," the way she spoke the last word caused Hiccup to think she was giving herself a pep talk. He was about to ask her about it, but decided not to bother her, when he saw the thoughtful face of Luneah staring at some faraway place. What do

"Can you take me to the top?" Hiccup asked.

"Sure!" She exclaimed before smirking. "Just be prepared to climb a lot."

"Oh gods..."

Luneah burst into laughter.

Hiccup was mesmerized by the sound. "You know what? Let's just stay here for now."

The girl nodded and stared out the window.

"So, you said that you were born on a Supermoon Eclipse. What is a Supermoon Eclipse?"

"Have you ever seen a Blood Moon?" She asked.

"Yeah, it's really awesome."

"Ok, so imagine that the earth is in the way of the light from the sun to the moon, alright? It's basically a lunar eclipse, but the sun is still in the right place to cast the red shadow on the moon."

"Sounds... very complicated."

"It kind of is."

Hiccup chuckled at this, whipping his head so his red-auburn bangs were out of his eyes.

"So," she said, before standing up. "You up for that climb yet?"

/

As the days passed, Astrid's crush for Hiccup increased until it became a total obsession. She remembered every little detail about him; his countless freckles, his emerald green eyes, his auburn hair that glowed red in the sun, and- most importantly- his funny, geeky, sarcastic, creative mind.

Hiccup may not have seemed like it, but he was the perfect heir. He was witty, charismatic and smart. Sure, he may be small and not that strong, but the villagers could do the hard work. All they needed was someone smart and wise to plan the village and battles, not someone to go and fight. They had plenty of people for that.

Gobber told Astrid about Hiccup's crush for her. She never knew about it, and just thought that all he wanted was to fit in, not for her to love him. She also learned that Hiccup made her precious axe. Before he left, Astrid probably would have gone into a fit of anger. But now, she realizes that her axe is the only thing left of Hiccup that belongs to her. Of course, besides the drawings he left behind in the forge.

There were a couple of drawings of Stoick, Gobber, sunsets, various village scenes, and her. She never realized how amazing Hiccup was at drawing until she saw his works. She knew he could draw, because the little notebook he carried everywhere hinted at it, but these works… They were spectacular. The amazing detail and shading made it feel as though the people were real, and staring right back at her.

Every tiny little thing that Astrid remembered made her long for him more. Her heart could burst at the feeling inside.

Hiccup had stayed, he would've been her future husband! Only the best shield maidens go to the heir and chief. And who knows, maybe one day, he would've impressed Astrid, and they would fall in love.

If only she had been kinder. If only she had stayed friends with him. If only she helped him with the others. None of this would happen. Berk would have it's lost heir, and their town would have their chief back.

Astrid now realizes it. She loves him. If only he stayed. If only...